Factory workers at one of Foxconn’s Brazilian plants are complaining of overcrowded buses, poor food and a lack of water. Unless the issues are resolved by May 3, they are planning to strike, Tech Guru reported on Thursday. Workers reportedly met last Monday to voice their concerns and have given the company 10 days to address them or else over 2,500 employees will strike. Foxconn recently hired more than a thousand workers, however the company did not increase its transport infrastructure, and was also forced to hire water trucks due to the lack of water in the factory. A representative for the employees expressed optimism that a solution would be reached without resorting to a strike.

[Via AppleInsider]

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As previously reported, Nokia on Monday held a groundbreaking ceremony that kicked-off development of the company’s first manufacturing facility in Vietnam. The new plant is located in Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park in Bac Ninh province and is beng developed on 42 acres of land. Nokia plans to open the factory in early 2013 and create as many as 10,000 new jobs while producing 45 million handsets by the end of 2014. “Thanks to the valued support from the Vietnamese government, our manufacturing program in Vietnam has been progressing well,” said Mary McDowell, Nokia’s Executive Vice President of Mobile Phones. “The new Nokia manufacturing plant will produce and provide new devices for compelling and affordable, localized mobile experiences, particularly in the growth markets.” Nokia’s press release follows below.

Nokia officially starts the development of its manufacturing facility in Vietnam

Reaffirming long-term commitment to the country and the company’s strategy to connect the next billion to information and the Internet

Bac Ninh, Vietnam – In an official ceremony today, Nokia kicked-off the development of its manufacturing facility in Vietnam, to serve the growing demand for mobile phones all over the world. The event featured Secretary of the Central Party Committee, Vice President of the National Assembly of Vietnam, Madam Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan; Minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology Vietnam, Mr. Nguyen Quan; Ambassador of Finland to Vietnam, Kimmo Lähdevirta; and high ranking officials from Central authorities and Bac Ninh province amongst more than 200 others.

Located in Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP) in Bac Ninh province, the Nokia Vietnam manufacturing facility is being developed on an area of 17 hectares. Nokia expects to start the operations of this factory in early 2013.

Today’s event is one step further in reaffirming Nokia’s long term commitment to the Vietnam market, under Nokia’s strategy to connect the next billion people to information and the Internet.

Nokia’s position in high growth economies is strong, and mobile phones play a strategic role. The new manufacturing site is being established to meet the growth in demand for these phones, as well as to help Nokia to deliver a contemporary mobile experience to the next billion consumers all over the world.

“We highly appreciate Nokia’s efforts in making this commitment a reality, which contributes to the growth of foreign investment in Vietnam in general and in Bac Ninh in particular. We also hope this will bring up not only economic value, but also other social benefits for the country like job creation and community knowledge enhancement on information technology alike,” said Mr. Nguyen Nhân Chien, President of People’s Committee of Bac Ninh province.

Mary McDowell, Executive Vice President, Mobile Phones, Nokia, said: “Thanks to the valued support from the Vietnamese government, our manufacturing program in Vietnam has been progressing well. The new Nokia manufacturing plant will produce and provide new devices for compelling and affordable, localized mobile experiences, particularly in the growth markets.

“Nokia is also committed to extending our positive reputation as an employer and as a corporate citizen. We expect to attract competent and energetic employees from the local skilled labor force. And in turn, employees at our new factory can expect a state-of-the-art facility and a positive, modern working environment with high professional and ethical standards,” continued McDowell.

Nokia is making progress in its strategy to connect the next billion. The company has launched an aspirational portfolio of devices that include fresh, contemporary design and form factors that are optimized for great experiences, such as social, entertainment, and messaging, and services that extend the value proposition to consumers.

Nokia first opened its doors in Vietnam in 1996 and, like many successful multinationals, saw Vietnam as a growing market with opportunity and potential. In light of the respect Nokia has wherever it operates, the company has worked hard to quickly become part of the Vietnamese community.

Nokia currently operates two representative offices in Vietnam: one in Ho Chi Minh City and the other in Hanoi. These offices carry out marketing and promotion activities for Nokia’s handset business. In 2011, Nokia established a branch office in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, increasing its footprint within the IndoChina region.

In November, 2011, Nokia established a new company, Nokia (Vietnam) LLC, to build and operate the new Vietnam manufacturing facility.

Over the last few months, Nokia has closed scaled back several of its Western factories and shed over 3,000 employees in a recent effort to cut costs. The Finnish handset maker will shift its manufacturing business to Asia and is planning to build a plant in Vietnam, a move that is expected to cost some $300 million according to Vietnamese news organization BaoMoi. “Shifting device assembly to Asia is targeted at improving our time to market. By working more closely with our suppliers, we believe that we will be able to introduce innovations into the market more quickly and ultimately be more competitive,” Nokia EVP of Markets Niklas Savander previously said. The company will reportedly hold a press conference to officially announce the project on April 23rd. The plant could create as many as 10,000 new jobs and is expected to produce 45 million handsets by the end of 2014.

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In response to one of the largest investigations ever conducted of a U.S. company’s foreign partners, Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn has agreed to hire tens of thousands of new workers, eliminate illegal overtime, improve safety condition and upgrade workers’ housing and other amenities, Reuters reported on Friday. After probing three Foxconn plants and interviewing over 35,000 workers, the Fair Labor Association reported that it found serious violations of Chinese labor laws, such as illegal and unpaid overtime, and extreme hours. Foxconn plans to reduce workers’ hours to 49 per week, which includes overtime, and it does not plan to raise salaries. The company will also hire additional workers and build more housing and canteens to combat overcrowding. While some of the company’s efforts have been praised, the changes have received mixed reactions from Foxconn’s employees. Read on for more.

Chen Yamei, a 25 year old worker who has been at a Foxconn for four years, complained that her salary will drop from 4,000 yuan a month to just over 2,000 yuan, roughly $317. “We are here to work and not to play,” she told Reuters. “Our income is very important.” Another worker had a different opinion on the matter, though. “Working here is just so-so. Working conditions and the pay are all right,” said 20 year old Li Wei, who has worked at the Foxconn factory for about a year. “However there are around 100,000 people in there, so sometimes the feeling can be oppressive,” Li said.

When 23-year-old Foxconn worker Wu Jun heard the news about working hours, she was filled with worry rather than joy. “We are worried we will have less money to spend. Of course, if we work less overtime, it would mean less money,” she said.

48% of employees said that their working hours were reasonable, 34% wanted to work more to increase pay and only 18% said their hours were too long, Bloomberg reported. 91% of employees polled said there was no need for more rest days, and 94% saw no need to change shift arrangements.

A pair of workers who claim to have been poisoned by toxins in a Suzhou, China factory while assembling touchscreens for Apple’s iPhone have written an open letter begging consumers to demand reform. SumOfUs, the organization behind the Ethical iPhone Campaign, released the letter in an email to the media on Wednesday afternoon. The letter was written by Guo Rui-qiang and Jia Jing-chuan, two former factory workers who urge consumers to sign SumOfUs’s petition and demand that Apple force its suppliers and manufacturing partners to improve working conditions at their Chinese factories. Both workers claim to have been poisoned by a chemical cleaner called N-hexane, and they have suffered neurological damage as a result. The Fair Labor Association is currently conduction inspections of two Foxconn factories, prompted by Apple, and while only preliminary inspections have been made at this point, the organization says it has already found “tons of issues.” The workers’ letter follows below in its entirety.

Dear SumOfUs Members and Friends -

You don’t know us but you have seen our work. Until recently, we worked long hours assembling Apple’s iPhone touch screens in Suzhou, China.

In early 2010, it was independently confirmed that 137 workers, including us, were poisoned by a chemical called n-hexane which was used to clean iPhone screens. N-hexane is known to cause eye, skin and respiratory tract irritation, and leads to persistant nerve damage. Apple admitted to gross labour rights violations more than a year later.

If more people know about what we went through, Apple will feel pressured to change so other workers don’t have to suffer like we did.

Can you share this letter with your friends, and ask them to join you in signing our petition calling for a reform of working conditions at their factories?

We have been pressuring Apple, and its new CEO Tim Cook, for years to compensate those of us who were injured working for them, and demanding reform of working conditions at their Chinese factories so that their workers don’t suffer like we do. Now we need your help as customers or potential customers of Apple.

We need your help to send a message to Apple before their shareholder meeting on Thursday, Feb. 23rd. We want to see a strict corporate social responsibility and reform of the audit system to prevent similar tragedies in the future. He will listen to you as current or potential consumers.

You’ve already signed the petition, and 82,000 others have too — for that, we thank you. We believe it’d be symbolicly powerful if 100,000 people signed the petition before SumOfUs delivers it to Tim Cook on Thursday at their shareholder meeting. We’re really close to that goal, but we need you to share our request with your friends to get over the edge.

Can you share our letter with your friends, and ask them to sign the petition too?

It has been over two years since many of us were hospitalized and treated but our debilitating symptoms continue. Rui-Qiang still can’t find work because he can no longer stand for the long hours most jobs require. Jing-Chuan has to spend nearly $100 a month on health supplements.

But with all of us working together to pressure Apple to change, we can make sure what happened to us doesn’t happen to others too.

-       Guo Rui-qiang and Jia Jing-chuan

ABC recently became the latest news organization to be given a look inside consumer electronics manufacturing giant Foxconn’s facilities in Shenzhen and Chengdu, China, and the Nightline special that resulted from the trip will air on Tuesday. In the meantime, ABC News has posted a 90-second teaser video containing footage from reporter Bill Weir’s trip to China. Apple, of course, is the only Foxconn partner mentioned in the preview so we can expect the forthcoming report to focus on the Cupertino-based company’s wares, but the teaser promises a never-before-seen look at Foxconn’s facilities so it could be an eye-opening segment. Foxconn and its premier partner Apple have once again taken center stage in a human rights debate that recently saw protesters deliver a petition to Apple’s Grand Central Terminal store demanding the technology giant play a more active role in improving working conditions in the Chinese factories that assemble its hardware. ABC’s teaser video follows after the break.

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The New York Times recently published an article discussing the unsafe working conditions in the factories Apple employs to build its products. It’s no secret that several factories belonging to Apple’s ODM partners have harsh working conditions; there are rumors of anti-suicide pledges that Foxconn workers have to sign, and safety is obviously a concern following multiple preventable explosions at Foxconn plants. While much has reportedly been done to improve working conditions at these plants, Apple CEO Tim Cook recently assured his employees that the Cupertino-based company does care about the workers in each of those factories. Read on for more.

“Unfortunately some people are questioning Apple’s values today, and I’d like to address this with you directly,” Cook said in a letter obtained by 9to5Mac. “We care about every worker in our worldwide supply chain. Any accident is deeply troubling, and any issue with working conditions is cause for concern. Any suggestion that we don’t care is patently false and offensive to us. As you know better than anyone, accusations like these are contrary to our values. It’s not who we are.”

Cook said he is “outraged” and that Apple inspects its partners’ factories each year, with Foxconn having recently opened up its factories to independent inspections from the Fair Labor Association. “We are focused on educating workers about their rights, so they are empowered to speak up when they see unsafe conditions or unfair treatment,” he said. Cook’s full email to Apple employees follows below.

Team,

As a company and as individuals, we are defined by our values. Unfortunately some people are questioning Apple’s values today, and I’d like to address this with you directly. We care about every worker in our worldwide supply chain. Any accident is deeply troubling, and any issue with working conditions is cause for concern. Any suggestion that we don’t care is patently false and offensive to us. As you know better than anyone, accusations like these are contrary to our values. It’s not who we are.

For the many hundreds of you who are based at our suppliers’ manufacturing sites around the world, or spend long stretches working there away from your families, I know you are as outraged by this as I am. For the people who aren’t as close to the supply chain, you have a right to know the facts.

Every year we inspect more factories, raising the bar for our partners and going deeper into the supply chain. As we reported earlier this month, we’ve made a great deal of progress and improved conditions for hundreds of thousands of workers. We know of no one in our industry doing as much as we are, in as many places, touching as many people.

At the same time, no one has been more up front about the challenges we face. We are attacking problems aggressively with the help of the world’s foremost authorities on safety, the environment, and fair labor. It would be easy to look for problems in fewer places and report prettier results, but those would not be the actions of a leader.

Earlier this month we opened our supply chain for independent evaluations by the Fair Labor Association. Apple was in a unique position to lead the industry by taking this step, and we did it without hesitation. This will lead to more frequent and more transparent reporting on our supply chain, which we welcome. These are the kinds of actions our customers expect from Apple, and we will take more of them in the future.

We are focused on educating workers about their rights, so they are empowered to speak up when they see unsafe conditions or unfair treatment. As you know, more than a million people have been trained by our program.

We will continue to dig deeper, and we will undoubtedly find more issues. What we will not do — and never have done — is stand still or turn a blind eye to problems in our supply chain. On this you have my word. You can follow our progress at apple.com/supplierresponsibility.

To those within Apple who are tackling these issues every day, you have our thanks and admiration. Your work is significant and it is changing people’s lives. We are all proud to work alongside you.

Tim

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Apple, a company known for its secrecy, has released a list of its official suppliers for the first time ever. Due to backlash from human rights groups, Apple created a supplier responsibility page on the company’s website. Previously, the page only featured labor and human rights, worker health and safety, environmental impact, and general ethics information. The company has updated the page, however, and it now now includes a list of more than 150 different companies that supply parts for Apple products. The move is part of Apple’s effort to address ongoing concerns surrounding the wages and working conditions in factories belonging to its suppliers. ”Apple prohibits practices that threaten the rights of workers — even when local laws and customs permit such practices,” Apple said on its site. “We’ve taken action toward ending excessive recruitment fees, preventing the hiring of underage workers, and prohibiting discriminatory policies at our suppliers. And as the first technology company to be admitted to the Fair Labor Association, Apple is setting a new standard in transparency and oversight.”

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Aluminum dust, which accumulates during the iPad polishing process, likely contributed to the recent explosion at an iPad plant that injured 61 workers according to the group China Labor Watch. The explosion occurred earlier this week at the Pegatron-owned Ri Teng Computer Accessory factory. According to the United States Department of Labor Occupational Health & Safety administration, aluminum can become explosive if it is “suspended in the air at the right concentration.” Safety has always been a concern at the plants Apple chooses to manufacture its products, and the Cupertino-based firm also recently admitted that 15 of its supply chain plants violate China’s environmental regulations. “We are working closely with Pegatron to understand the cause of this accident,” Apple spokeswoman Carolyn Wu told Bloomberg. “Our hearts go out to the people who were hurt in Songjiang.”

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Foxconn’s plans to build a $12 billion factory in Brazil dedicated to producing iPads is “in doubt,” government officials in Brazil told Reuters. Reportedly, negotiations have stalled because both sides have yet to reach an agreement on tax breaks for Foxconn. Additionally, Brazil may not be able to populate the factory with enough skilled laborers. Worse still, Brazil has been tasked with building infrastructure for the 2014 World Cup followed by the Olympics two years later. Skeptics argue Brazil will not be able to finish all of the construction required for the two major sporting events and create Foxconn’s proposed “intelligent city” outside of Sao Paulo. Read on for more.

“The talks have been very difficult, and the project for a Brazilian iPad is in doubt,” one official told Reuters, noting that Foxconn has made “crazy demands,” in the country. “The negotiation is rather complex. The situation for structure, technology, energy, logistics, it’s all very complex,” Brazil’s Science and Technology Minister Aloizio Mercadante explained. Oddly, Mercadante also told press earlier this month that Foxconn was already prepared to begin production at a plan in Jundiaí, Brazil. “We’re dealing with a lot of issues, like the [Foxconn] trying to figure out how to do business in Brazil … and Brazil figuring out how to produce these complicated products,” another Brazilian official said. “Maybe we will end up starting with something smaller.”

Reports surfaced on September 26th that Apple was cutting iPad orders by 25% for the fourth quarter of this year, although there was also speculation the 25% cut was simply a shift from Hon Hai’s Chinese plants to Brazil-based factories.

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A Foxconn factory in Shadong, China caught fire on Tuesday but the blaze was quickly extinguished, Reuters reported. Foxconn said there will not be an impact on production and there were no worker casualties. An explosion caused damage at a Foxconn factory in Chengdu, China in May, and resulted in three Foxconn worker deaths, 15 injuries and a slowdown in Apple iPad production. That tragedy also caused a 2.14% monthly revenue dip, or about US$6.95 billion in lost revenue. A Foxconn spokesperson told Reuters that Tuesday’s fire was caused by electrical cables on the factory roof and noted that the damages will be covered by insurance. A video of the fire follows after the break.

[Via M.I.C. Gadget]

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Apple may invest $1 billion in a Sharp LCD factory to ensure adequate production of screens for its iPhone and iPad, according to MF Global FXA Securities analyst David Rubenstein. Apple typically buys its LCD displays from Samsung, LG and Chimei Innolux, although recent reports have suggested the iPhone maker has boosted its orders with Samsung after LG failed to meet iPad 2 display requirements. However, Apple’s recent legal battles with Samsung in the United States, the European Union and Australia could be why the company is looking to invest in other manufacturers. “If the situation escalates into a state of war, this could mean a huge shift in orders,” a source told Reuters, suggesting that Apple could give larger orders to Elpida Memory and Toshiba. Sharp is expected to provide the LCD displays for Apple’s sixth-generation iPhone, which is expected to launch next year.

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Hon Hai-owned manufacturing giant Foxconn intends to release a portion of its workforce in favor of 1 million new robot workers according to a new report. Xinhua News Agency said on Friday that Hon Hai chairman and founder Terry Gou confirmed the news, seemingly in callous fashion at an employee dance party. The new robots will be used to perform “simple and routine work” such as part assembly and welding. Foxconn currently employs approximately 1.2 million people and also utilizes 10,000 robots. According to the chairman’s reported comments, the number of robot workers will increase to 300,000 next year and 1 million in three years. It is unclear how much of Foxconn’s current workforce will be let go following the introduction of these new robots. Foxconn’s treatment of its workforce has garnered a great amount of attention following a string of employee suicides.

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An explosion at Foxconn’s iPad manufacturing plant in Chengdu, China last month had a negative impact on the company’s business in May despite initial assurances to the contrary. Foxconn’s revenue last month dipped 2.14% sequentially to NT$200.56 billion, or approximately US$6.95 billion, following production halts tied to the fatal explosion that killed three workers and injured at least 15 more. The tragic accident, caused by the ignition of flammable aluminum dust in a parts polishing workshop, is thought to have cut iPad 2 production by as many as 500,000 units. Foxconn’s revenue in May was still up 23% compared to the same month last year.

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DigiTimes is citing a report from sznews.com today that three Foxconn employees have been arrested in Shenzhen, China for leaking the design specs of the iPad 2 to third-party case manufacturers ahead of the device’s launch. The three were allegedly arrested in December of last year and were charged in late March for the leaks. Foxconn grew suspicious of its own employees after accurate third-party iPad 2 cases began popping up on the market; the firm then asked local authorities to investigate. Foxconn manufacturers electronics for a number of major companies including Apple, HP, Palm, and Sony, and it has been called out in the past for the harsh treatment of its employees. [Via AppleInsider]

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